Ask Adam - Meat and Dairy

first want to thank all of you for your enormous support and generosity over the past week. I received a number of phone calls and emails filled with good wishes in response to my new column in the Sea to Sky News. It is my pleasure to be with you every week and I return the thanks for embracing me with open arms.

Now down to business!

This weeks Question

Hi Adam,

Thanks for the great article in the recent edition of Sea To Sky News (August 21/08).

My question is in regards to milk products. I don't eat a lot of milk products for no other reason than I tend to eat a simple diet which involves soy milk and maybe a bit of cheese.

However, now that I have small children, I am buying more and milk products because I have read and heard that milk (calcium) is very important for growing bodies. My children have milk, yoghurt, and cheese each day.

I recently read a book claiming the dairy (and red meat industries) have really pushed the "health benefits" of their products to promote their sales. And, that milk products are really not as critical for children as what my generation has grown up to believe.

In addition, this book talked about other countries in the world (especially Asian cultures) which consume minimal amounts of dairy products but still maintain well-balanced diets.

What are your thoughts on this issue?

Thanks

My Thoughts

Your inquiry into the importance of milk is a fantastic first question to receive. The topic is worthy of an entire book, but for the sake of all the readers I will keep my thoughts to a few paragraphs.

I grew up all meat and potatoes. If I did not have a piece of meat on my plate where was my protein coming from? How about the iron? As for dairy, right from a young age I learnt from multiple sources, whether it was family, friends, teachers and my doctor or television commercials all about the importance of eating dairy to ensure I received the calcium necessary to have strong and healthy bones.

How many of you can relate to this?

There is a lot of politics involved when it comes to the world’s resources and food is one of the biggest. Without getting too political, we are at the mercy of big agriculture and therefore we are forced to consume their multi million dollar marketing campaigns. For decades we have been told of the benefits of eating meat and dairy. I am not here to tell you to stop eating them, but I know first hand that my ability to regain control over my own health started when I reduced my intake of meat and dairy.

I leant about the Power of Food at the age of 28, until then I just ate

Having discovered “whole foods”, which are nuts and seeds, grains and beans, fruits and vegetable at the age of 28, I have since been able to regain control over my weight, my pre-diabetic state, cholesterol levels, energy levels and so much more. At first I could not believe how great I was feeling, eating seeds and grains in replacement to meat and dairy. When I began to switch my daily consumption of meat and dairy to whole foods, many of my friends were stunned as they started to make fun of me for eating like a bird. Some would say it’s not very manly, eating seeds, but who cares what others think if you’re feeling great and I started to feel fantastic. No more bloating, my heartburn started to disappear and I even began to lose a few pounds.

The point is that in North America we over consume steak, burgers, cheese, milk etc. to the point where our bodies are having difficulty functioning on a healthy level. I know now my living off Zantac (antacid) for three years to ease my daily heartburn was due to the excessive protein I consumed through meat and dairy. Having discovered many alternative sources of calcium, iron and protein such as hemp seeds and quinoa (grain) my digestion has improved and my nutrient absorption has increased, improving my overall health.

When feeding our families it is important that we begin to start taking matters into our own hands. Kerri, it sound as if you have begun to do this by reading a book based on the dairy and meat industries. By creating our own awareness we are able to make healthier choices for our families.

I have so much more to say about this topic, but so little space to say it. Therefore I would like to offer everyone an opportunity to take part in a FREE teleclass on this very subject on Tuesday September 2 at 6:30pm. During this 30 minute talk I will share with you my top three tips when eating meat and dairy as well as my top power foods for calcium, protein and iron. If you are interested in taking part please email me at info@poweroffood.com and I will provide you with the access code. Due to limited space this opportunity is only available to the first 20 people who contact me.

What would you like to read about? Ask Adam at info@poweroffood.com